Dollar Tree, the Chesapeake-based discount retailer, said Wednesday morning it plans to test different prices at its flagship brand known for products costing no more than one dollar.

The chain made the announcement as part of its fourth quarter and annual earnings call with analysts. The chain has tested different pricing before but reverted back to its promise that everything in the store costs a dollar.

"We're open to testing again," said CEO Gary Philbin.

Asked by an analyst, "why wouldn’t we do it now?” Philbin said. “We’re open to ideas, good ideas that work.”

Philbin didn't put a timeline on the experiment but said the company would do it in a very "disciplined, logical way." He also didn't say where the testing would be conducted except that it would be stores likely served by the company's new joint Family Dollar and Dollar Tree distribution centers.

CHESAPEAKE — Dollar Tree is closing up to 390 Family Dollar stores this year and rebranding about 200 others under the Dollar Tree name.

The company closed 84 Family Dollar stores in the fourth quarter, 37 more than originally planned. The company has said that it will renovate at least 1,000 stores...

“Our customers are very loyal to what Dollar Tree represents. It’s a brand. It’s not just price and item," he said.

The change follows encouragement from an activist investor, Starboard Value, which has also wanted Chesapeake-based Dollar Tree to sell off its Family Dollar brand, which has struggled to show increases in same-store sales.

The company took an impairment charge of $2.7 billion on Family Dollar in its most recent fiscal year, determining it was worth less than its carrying value. Dollar Tree paid $9 billion for Family Dollar in 2015.

While it plans to open 200 new Family Dollar stores this year, it will close as many as 390 under-performing stores and re-brand 200 to its Dollar Tree brand. It normally closed about 75 stores annually.

The company says it also plans to renovate 1,000 Family Dollar stores into a style it has internally referred to as H2, which executives have said has attracted more customer traffic at locations already renovated. The stores include $1-only sections with Dollar Tree branding. The company also plans to add alcohol sales to about 1,000 stores, and add freezers and coolers to 400 locations.

At the end of the year, the company had 8,236 Family Dollar stores and 7,001 Dollar Tree stores.

The company expects to finish consolidating its headquarters in Chesapeake by July.

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